


The Christmas Lights

by Kioee



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: Christmas Arguments, Christmas Decorations, M/M, domestic husbands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-18 12:00:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21960277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kioee/pseuds/Kioee
Summary: It's the Christmas season, and there's nothing better than putting up a lavish, over-the-top Christmas light display. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
Relationships: Marufuji Ryou | Zane Truesdale/Edo Phoenix | Aster Phoenix
Comments: 5
Kudos: 17





	The Christmas Lights

**Author's Note:**

  * For [chazzercised](https://archiveofourown.org/users/chazzercised/gifts).



Invitations came in requesting the presence of Zane Truesdale and Aster Phoenix at a number of parties and family gatherings for the holiday season. It was with no second thought that the two of them deposited the invites in the trash (both physical and digital.) Christmas was for the two of them, and honestly, any excuse to avoid spending extended time with other people was always a good excuse.

Nobody else was as interesting as each other and the holidays were about spending time with the ones you loved the most. There was no one Aster would rather spend his time with than Zane. Zane understood him in a way no one else did. There was also the added bonus that Zane was just as willing to judge other people as Aster was. No one was surprised that the two of them had gotten married. And no one could fault them for wanting to spend their first Christmas as a married couple together.

They also weren’t going to be known as the people who didn’t have the best Christmas lights on the whole damn street. Aster brought home boxes of string lights, and artfully chosen lawn pieces. They both scoured the internet for the perfect color combinations complementing the trees on their lawn to the main house to the garage. The backyard had even been done up, just in case someone saw their private space behind the fence, though the fence had its own special lights.

Zane felt like he was really outdoing himself this year. He’d been outside for a couple hours, when Aster walked out to the yard and handed him a thermos. He took a sip. Cocoa. Artfully crafted. Zane appreciated the level of care that Aster took with things like that. This wasn’t some store-bought drivel. This was gourmet chocolate and heavy cream. It was perfect. 

Zane opened his mouth to express his appreciation but Aster spoke first. “Be careful not to aggravate your heart condition out here.” He looked around. “Your passed out body would really ruin the aesthetic you’ve got going here.”

“Oh, Aster, you’re so hilarious,” Zane said. He took another sip of the cocoa. “You should think about giving up dueling and going into comedy full time.”

Aster laughed and nudged Zane. “Come on. Take a break.”

With a sigh, Zane agreed, and trudged back inside. It probably would do him good to get some rest. They disabled the doorbell and shut all the doors to the den, lighting the fire and playing music

“Why do they keep coming to our house, Aster?” Zane looked less weary and more like he was about to put on his duel disk and fight off the next person who came to their door. In fact, that might have actually been his plan.

Aster put a hand on his shoulder. “They’re our friends and they care about us,” he said. “A little rude considering we ignored all their invitations,” he added. “They should really learn to take a hint.”

“No kidding,” Zane agreed, but relaxed a little. He glanced at the door. “You know we could probably disable the doorbell and barricade ourselves in the den where we can’t hear any knocking.”

Aster smiled and slid his hand down Zane’s arm, stopping at his hand and grasping it. He gave it a light tug. “That’s the best idea you’ve had all day. Let’s go.”

Despite disabling the doorbell, it would seem Zane and Aster were not immune to the plight of people coming to see them. A lot of careful planning and strong locks were not enough to deter even the most stubborn of their friends. 

“Hey guys,” rang out a voice behind them. In perfect synchronization they turned to look.

Zane frowned. “Jaden, how did you get in our house?”

“The door of course!”

“It was locked,” Zane replied.

Aster looked between the two of them. “Did you pick the lock on our door, Jaden?”

Jaden shrugged. “We don’t need to worry about the details.”

Zane stood up. “I am worried about the details. Our security is top of the line and yet somehow _you_ get in?”

“Yeah, well, it’s obviously not that great,” Jaden replied. “Anyway, how come you guys aren’t responding to any invites? We have some awesome holiday parties coming up and it just won’t be as cool without you two.”

This time Aster stood up. “That’s nice, Jaden, we’ll think about it.” He started pushing Jaden out of the room. “But right now it’s us time, so you should probably get going.”

“Oh, okay, but definitely send in your RSVP because Chazz is a real asshole about guest lists,” Jaden warned. 

“It’ll be fine, Jaden, okay bye,” Aster said as he gave Jaden one last shove before slamming the door to the den. 

He met Zane’s gaze. “We’ll get new locks,” Aster agreed. He strode to the couch and sank down, gently pulling on Zane’s arm to sit as well. They sat together, leaning against each other and listening to the crackling of the fire. The cocoa had been finished long ago, but neither wanted to get up from their comfort to get more. They began to drift off in each other’s arms. Despite the interruption from before, this day was peaceful.

If only it could remain as such.

A gentle knock on the door brought them from the brink of sleep. Aster looked confused and met Zane’s glare. Zane grunted. “Well we know it’s not Jaden because he doesn’t knock.”

Aster snorted and then sighed as the knocking became more insistent. He stood up and went to the door to find Syrus standing on the other side when he opened it. “What are you doing here?”

“Why are you in our house?” Zane asked.

Syrus shuffled his feet. “Well, Jaden said the front door was open and I just wanted to come over and talk to Zane because Mom has been really worried since he hasn’t called or texted or anything about coming to Christmas, and I just thought I’d check to make sure he hadn’t died or anything.”

With a groan, Zane pressed his hands into his face. “Well I’m clearly not dead.”

There were a few moments of silence as Zane kept his eyes shut, leaning his head against the back of the sofa. Aster looked between Zane and Syrus and Syrus looked between Aster and Zane. Syrus cleared his throat. “So are you coming home for Christmas or…?”

“No,” Zane replied.

“Okay,” said Syrus, still very much in their house and not looking like he had any intention of leaving.

Aster sighed again. “We’re spending Christmas just the two of us. Our gifts are being sent by mail.” He started gently pushing Syrus away, wondering why he had to be the apparent bouncer for his own house. “Zane will make sure to visit with your mom sometime after.” Zane made a noncommittal noise. Aster shot him a look.

“Anyway, have a good Christmas, Syrus, and please don’t tell anyone to just come barging into our home.” Aster guided Syrus all the way out of the house, making sure to lock the door after. When he turned around, he saw Zane behind him, dressed in his winter gear again.

Zane sighed. “Well, I might as well get back to putting the lights up. I have a sudden need to get out some energy.”

With another sigh, Aster unlocked the door and opened it. “If anyone else wants to come visit us, just strangle them with the string lights.” Zane laughed before stepping outside.

Two hours later after the sun had set, Zane came back in the house, looking extremely cold and haggard, but with a fire in his eyes Aster usually only saw when he dueled. “Come look,” he said simply before going back outside. Aster barely had time to put on a coat before following after.

Aster stared in wonder. The string lights in intricate icicle patterns hung from the eaves, with a bright red star on the roof. A sleigh with Santa and the reindeer was positioned as if landing on the roof by the star. Blue lights bordered the windows and doors and a projector displayed snowflakes and shimmering lights against the house. In the yard a gazebo was lit up overlooking penguins dueling, complete with holograms of a pre-recorded duel. It was a spectacular sight.

“Zane this is amazing!”

Zane smirked. “Of course it is.” 

Aster smiled at Zane and wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him to the door. “Come on. Let’s eat some dinner and go to bed. It’s been a long day.”

“You’ve been inside lounging around all day,” Zane replied.

Aster scoffed. “I was building a deck for a special tournament in January. It’s all insect theme. Thought I’d try something different for a fun challenge.”

“Do you want me to come watch?”

Aster shrugged. “I think you have a different tournament that same weekend, but it’ll be recorded and we can watch each other’s duels after we get back home.”

Zane smiled. “Good, and then I can tell you what you’re doing wrong.”

With a laugh, Aster nudged Zane. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll be the one giving you pointers.”

They sat at the kitchen counter, eating their meal and structuring their decks for their upcoming tournaments, pointing out ways they would counter certain moves. Zane looked up from the cards spread over the counters. “We should see if any tag tournaments are coming up,” he said.

Aster smiled. “We should, though sometimes I do feel bad for our opponents.”

“If they can’t last more than one turn, I don’t have any sympathy for them.” Zane started gathering the cards back in their cases.

“We should turn in for the night,” said Aster as he stood to stretch, before picking up their plates.

Zane leaned back. “I think I’m going to watch some recordings of the other duelists in the tournament, just to keep up on their strategies.”

“Don’t stay up too late,” Aster replied as he leaned over, kissing Zane before heading to their bedroom.

Zane eventually retired to bed and drifted off to sleep. It didn’t feel too long before a hand gripped his shoulder, shaking him awake.

“Why are the lights on?”

“What?” Zane replied groggily and unsure why he was woken up in the middle of the night just for this.

“The lights,” Aster repeated. “There is no reason they need to be on all night.” He paced around the bedroom, looking as agitated as he sounded. “They need to be turned off at a reasonable time before we go to bed. We don’t need to light up the entire neighborhood.” He stopped and looked directly at Zane who was sitting up, the sleep wearing off.

“Not to mention,” he continued and Zane realized this was going to be a full lecture. He knew Aster could go on like this for a while so he made himself comfortable to listen to what he had to say. “Not to mention, the twinkling of the lights cast shadows in a way that I think someone is walking around our property, and though I am perfectly capable of fending off threats to us and our home, I would rather they be real threats than imagined ones.”

Zane sighed. “I worked hard putting those lights up,” he explained. “Each string meticulously placed to create the perfect show for all those who wish to look upon it.” He crossed his arms. “I won’t let all that hard work go to waste by turning the lights off at only 10:00PM.” 

“It’s wasteful,” Aster countered. “Who needs to see it at three in the morning? Why waste the electricity?”

“It’s solar powered!”

“You’re being unreasonable. I can’t have this conversation with you when you’re like this.” Aster threw up his hands and stormed out of the room. 

Aster stayed in the guest room for five days before the Incident. Zane tried everything he could think of to get on Aster’s good side again. That is except turn off the Christmas lights. Aster was clearly the unreasonable one and didn’t appreciate the beauty of the display as much as he originally said he did. Every attempt at conversation ended in slammed doors and griping about having to wear an eye mask to sleep.

Sometimes the urge to cook something hit Zane late at night, and Christmas got him antsy anyway. He knew Aster liked things on the gourmet side, so preparing a full meal with all the fancy meats and special dishes could be a lot of fun. Cooking for the holidays was even more fun. He pulled out the ingredients and began chopping the vegetables, enjoying the way the freshly sharpened knife sliced through them with ease.

“Zane.” Aster’s voice snapped him out of his concentration and he looked up. 

“Did I wake you?” he asked, thinking that he couldn’t possibly have woken Aster up from this far away, but it was always possible.

“Turn off the lights, Zane!” Aster looked harried. Of all the times Zane had seen him before, he had never seemed fazed by anything. Sure, he got demanding but it was nothing compared to this. There was something in his eyes that revealed a man who had nothing to lose. Zane wasn’t going to back down, though.

“I’m tired of hearing about the lights,” Zane said as he continued chopping the vegetables. “They’re staying on.”

“Off!” Aster yelled.

Zane turned to face Aster and tell him to fuck off. As he swung his arms out in exasperation, he realized Aster had stepped closer. They both stared at each other as they processed what had happened. When they looked down, they spotted a spot of red spreading across Aster’s shirt, just under his chest.

“I need to go to the hospital,” said Aster, calmer than he had been the entire week.

“Why would you step so close to me while I’m holding a knife!”

Aster was pulling out his phone to call an ambulance. “Why would you wave your arms around like some kind of brute while holding a knife?”

“I was trying to make you a nice meal.”

Aster rolled his eyes, before gasping and clutching at the spot where he’d gotten stabbed. “Dammit. Get some gauze or something from the first aid kit while we wait for the paramedics.” Someone on the line must’ve picked up because Aster’s attention went back to the phone. “Yes, I need an ambulance. I’ve been stabbed by my husband. No it’s fine; it was an accident.”

Zane came back with the gauze and ace bandages to keep it in place. Carefully, he lifted Aster’s shirt and switched the pressure on the wound from Aster’s hand to the gauze. Aster sucked in a breath as it stung. He wrapped the bandage around, keeping it tight. 

“Yes, thank you. No you don’t need to stay on the line. I’ll just wait for the ambulance.” Aster hung up the phone. 

“This fucking hurts, Zane.”

Zane frowned. “It’s not like I meant to.”

“Okay, well you did.”

The sound of sirens getting louder cut off their argument and Zane helped Aster get to the front door, his grip getting more intense as they got closer. He’d almost passed out by the time the paramedics met them at the door. They did a quick evaluation, commending Zane on the bandaging and got Aster in the ambulance. Zane got in after to ride along to the hospital.

“So, you stabbed him?” one of the EMTs asked, barely holding back laughter.

Zane glared. “Not intentionally.”

The EMTs looked at each other but made the wise decision not to ask any further questions. Thankfully, the ride to the hospital wasn’t too long and they got Aster in right away. After an initial exam, they made the determination to take him to an OR; apparently the wound was deeper than either of them had realized and it wouldn’t take a few simple stitches.

Zane paced back and forth in the waiting room. Sure, it was routine surgery and the wound was deep but hadn’t hit anything vital, but things could go wrong. If Aster did make it through this, which was likely, Zane would never hear the end of it. He could picture Aster’s smug little voice trying to nullify all arguments by bringing up the time Zane stabbed him. Zane crossed his arms. Maybe something minor would go wrong and Aster wouldn’t be able to talk anymore.

About an hour later, Aster was taken into recovery and Zane went to the hospital room, sitting in the chair by the bed, waiting for Aster to fully wake from the anesthesia. He almost drifted off himself before he heard his name being called weakly from the bed.

“Hey,” he said. “You’re finally awake.

“You know, I didn’t think I’d spend my Christmas in the hospital after getting stabbed in my own home.”

“I won’t make it a regular occurrence,” Zane scoffed. 

“I could have died.”

“And I feel badly about that.”

Aster smiled. “When we get home, you’ll need to take care of me so I can heal in time for the tournament.”

“Don’t think I’ll go easy on you while working on strategy,” Zane said. “You’re in stable condition. There’s no excuse for slacking off.”

Aster scoffed. “What kind of duelist would I be if I let something like a light stabbing stop me?”

With a smile Zane wrapped an arm around Aster’s shoulders. “And none of your vital organs were damaged.” He sighed contentedly. “Merry Christmas, Aster.”

“Merry Christmas, Zane.” Aster kissed Zane. “Will you finally turn those lights off.”

“The lights are staying on until midnight tonight, at which point I am taking down all the Christmas decorations, and not a minute sooner.”

“Zane,” Aster started.

“No, Aster. Just because I have more Christmas spirit than you is no excuse to complain. You can deal with the lights for a week each year.”

“Well, I probably can’t help you,” Aster said. “I’m going to guess I’ll have to take it easy for a few days.”

Aster was released from the hospital that night, still complaining about the lights until midnight when Zane went out to take everything down as planned.When he was done, he came back to bed to find Aster awake, taking some of his medication. Zane smiled and quickly sprung into action, plugging in and wrapping a strand of lights around Aster. He tried to look annoyed by it, but Aster couldn’t help but laugh. “At least this is better than stabbing me.”

“That was one time and you didn’t even die. Complain to me when you have to spend more than a day in the hospital.” There was no bite behind his words and the two of them smiled at each other, happy for one of the more eventful Christmases they’d shared together.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading and merry christmas everyone!


End file.
